Kelly, Bruins hope to seize the moment in Game 7

BOSTON -- There’s only so many ways you can stress the
importance of tonight’s tilt at TD Garden.

Chris Kelly's overtime goal in Game 1
gave the Bruins their lone home win thus far in the playoffs.
(Getty Images)

The Bruins and Capitals will take to the ice for Game 7 this
evening. The winner moves on. The loser goes home. After 82 regular
season games and six playoff contests, it all comes down to this
for the B’s and Caps.

“Well, I mean, it’s a Game 7,” coach Claude
Julien said. “I think its Game 7 for both teams. I think our
guys are ready for it and I’m sure they are, too.
There’s not much you can say about those games except that
you come ready to play, you do the best you can, you try and be as
focused and poised and everything else that you can be. You try and
control the things that you can and hope that those are the
elements that are going to help you succeed.”

Seventh games are a special event in the wide world of sports,
but for Bruins center Chris Kelly, his preparation process will be
the same as it always has been.

The veteran forward stressed the importance of the Bruins
remaining even-keeled coming into the do-or-die battle against
Washington, starting from the moment they woke up.

“Obviously, you can’t get too high or too low in
these situations,” Kelly said. “I think being
through these types of games in hockey throughout our lives is a
good thing. I woke up ready to come to the rink and skate this
morning and do all the fun things that I do every other day when I
come in the rink.”

As nerve-wracking as such games may be, Kelly and the B’s
are excited about the challenge that lies ahead of them.

“Yeah this is a great opportunity,” he
said. “I think that’s how you should look at it.
This is an opportunity that a lot of people don’t get a
chance to take advantage of or be part of. I never had the
opportunity to play in a Game 7 until I got here last year and that
was one of those things that I remember thinking going against
Montreal.

“For one, I got to play the Montreal Canadians in the
playoffs, which was something that was pretty neat and then I got
to play Game 7. I didn’t think I’d get to play
three of them, but this is just a great opportunity.”

Kelly -- who scored a third-period goal in Boston’s 4-3
overtime win over the Canadiens in Game 7 last spring – is
confident the Black and Gold will receive a nice boost from the
Garden faithful tonight.

“Yeah it’s always great to have that Game 7 at
home,” he said. “We’ve worked hard all year
to put ourselves in this position and there’s no better place
than playing in front of our fans in Boston here, so we’re
excited.”

If the game goes the way Kelly and the Bruins hope it will, the
crowd will be at its loudest when that final horn sounds.